Inflatable plumber&#39;s test plug with drain



May 28, 1963 L. F. ALl-:sslo 3,091,259

INFLATBLE PLUMBERS TEST PLUG WITH DRAIN Filed May 6. 1960 l I 201( n Mufl Il 'il Il All.. Il I ,gl r

27, 32 32 B /f/ 23 INVENTOIL ,l f L Louls F. ALESSIO ATTORNEY UniteStates arent ffice damse Patented May 28, 1953 3,091,259 INFLATABLEPLUMBERS TEST PLUG The present invention relates to improvements inplumber supplies and, more specifically, to a new and improved 4balltest plug of rubber or the like for use in waste and vent stacks or thelike. There are known test plugs which are adapted for being insertedinto a pipe of a plumbing system and for being inilated so as to form atemporary obstruction therein, allowing the system to be filled withwater for testing purposes. To inate these plugs or to release airtherefrom after completion of a test, an operator has to insert hishands into the pipe containing the plug for the purpose of manipulatinga control valve or the like on a short air stem extended from the plug.This is highly objectionable because when releasing the air from a testplug, the force of the water above the plug causes the plug to fall downsuddenly, which can cause serious injuries to the hands of the operator,even to the extent of -breaking or. tearing off one or more of hisfingers.

Therefore, one object of the present invention is the provision of adevice of the character described which makes it possible to inllate, orto deflate, a test plug without inserting ones hands into a pipe, andwhich also allows to drain off the water in the pipe above the plugbefore releasing the air from the test plug, thus avoiding any danger inthe use of such test plugs and greatly simplifying the operationthereof.

Another object of the present invention is the provision of a device ofthe character described which is of substantially the same size andWeight as the hitherto known test plugs, and which is simple inconstruction, durable, sturdy, reliable in operation, and well adaptedfor withstanding the rough usage to which devices of this typeordinarily are subjected.

With the foregoing and other objects which will appear as thedescription proceeds, the invention consists of certain novel details ofconstruction and combinations of parts hereinafter more fully describedand pointed out in the claims, it being understood that changes may bemade in the construction and arrangements of parts of the embodimentdisclosed without departing from the spirit of the invention as claimed.

In the accompanying drawing I have set forth an illustrative embodimentof my invention.

-In said drawing:

FIGURE l is a top plan view of a preferred embodiment of my invention;

FIG. 2 is a side elevational view;

FIG. 3 is a detailed side view of a double hose clamp; and,

FIG. 4 is a plan view of the clamp of FIG. 3.

Similar reference characters refer to similar parts throughout theseveral Views.

In the drawing the numeral 1 denotes a hollow plug of rubber or the likehaving a substantially cylindrical side wall portion 2 preferablyprovided with annular ribs- 3, and having a rst end portion 4 as well asa second end portion 5. The plug 1 is so dimensioned that it fits snuglyinto the pipes, stacks, toilet bowl traps, or the like to be tested. Itsouter diameter may be, for instance, 2 inches for testing 2inch pipes,or 3 inches for testing 3-inch pipes, or 4 inches for testing 4-inchpipes and so forth.

An air hose 7 has one of its ends secured to a reinforced section 10 ofthe second end portion 5 of the plug 1, and an opening 11 in the section10 is in registering alignment with the interior of the hose 7, so thatair non-collapsible pipe 20 of plastic material or of metal` can beforced into the plug 1 through the hose 7. A valve 12 is provided at theother end of the hose 7. A water discharge hose 17 is either entirelyextended through the plug 1, or is secured to a non-bendable or or thelike, which is extended through the plug and which has ange portions 21that are secured to the rst end portion 4 and the second end portion 5by means of vulcanizing or the like. Both the pipe 2li and the elements7 and 10 may `be arranged off centre relative to the plug 1, asillustrated in the example shown in FIG. l, or the pipe 20 may beextended through the centre of the plug 1, and only the elements 7 and10 arranged 0d centre. A cock valve 22 is provided at the outerfree endof the hose 17. A chain 23, which preferably has at one end a ringmember 24, is secured to the bottom portion 5, preferably by means of aclamp 25.

This clamp may be either a rigid element encompassing with its ends theend portion of the hoses 7 and 17, or it may consist of a pair of ringmembers 27 and 30 (FIGS. 3 and 4), each of which has a circular portion31 and a pair of straight end portions 32 which have registering holes33 through which extends a link 34 of the chain 23. In order to test apipe or a plumbing system, the plug 1 is inserted into a pipe, such asthe T-pipe 35, for instance, and the elements 7, 17 and 23 are extendedthrough a convenient opening in the pipe 35. Then air is pumped into theplug through the hose 7 to a pressure of about thirty pounds per squareinch. Thereafter the system, or the like which is to be tested, is lledwithV water above the plug 1, while the valve 22. is closed. After thetest has been completed, the water is removed from the system or thelike, by opening the valve 22, and is drained into a garden hose or thelike. Then the plug 1 can be deated, by opening the valve 12, and theplug can be removed easily and without any danger to the operator, bypulling it out of the pipe by means of the chain 23.

Thereby the aforementioned formation and arrangement of the members 27and 30 will allow the link 34 to tilt the members 27 and 30 toward eachother during the pulling of the chain 23, so that the second end portion5 of the plug 1 will become somewhat concave, which will ease thepressure and overcome any sticking of the lower annular rib 3 againstthe inner side of the pipe 35, thus greatly facilitating the removal ofthe plug 1.

Since certain changes may -be made in the above article and differentembodiments of the invention could be made without departing from thescope thereof, it is intended that all matter contained in the abovedescrip tion or shown in the accompanying drawing shall be interpretedas illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

It is also to be understood that the following claims are intended tocover all of the generic and specific features of the invention hereindescribed, and all statements of the scope of the invention which as amatter of language might be said to fall therebetween.

Having thus fully described my said invention, what I claim as new anddesire to secure by Letters Patent is:

l. A test plug comprising a cylindrical resilient hollow body havingfirst and second end wall portions as well as a side portion, an airhose in communication with the interior of said body being extended fromthe second one of said end wall portions, a drain hose secured to saidsecond end wall portion, a rigid conduit extending through said body andconnected to said drain hose, a pair of ring members having circularportions encompassing end portions of said air hose and of said drainhose adjacent said second end wall portion and having also tering holesin the straight portions of said ring membersV for pivotally joining theoverlaying sections of the" straight portions of said ring members so asto collapse said pair of ring members upon pulling the chain link,`

thereby partially collapsing an end Wall portion of said resilienthollow body.

2. In a test plug which consists of a resilient hollow body'having sideandA end wall'portions as well as of an airV hose connected to theinterior of the hollow body and secured to an end wall thereof and of adrain hose ex# tended through the hollow body, collapsible clamp meansfor facilitating the removal of the hollow body from a pipe, said clampmeans comprising a pair ofV ring members having circular portionsYencompassing end portions of said air hose and of said drain hoseadjacentr an end wall portion of the hollow body and having alsostraight portions extending from said circular portions and par; tiallyoverlaying each other and having registering holes, and a chain linkextending through the registering holes in the straight portions of saidring members for pivotally joining the overlaying sections of thestraight portions of said ring members.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATESPATENTS"1,221,733 Henderson Apr. 3, 1917 1,506,418 Evensta etal Aug. 26, 19242,299,116 Svirsky Oct. 20,v 1942 2,927,609 Vander Lans Mar. 8, l96()FOREIGN PATENTS 12,179 Great Britain Aug. 6, 1898

1. A TEST PLUG COMPRISING A CYLINDRICAL RESILIENT HOLLOW BODY HAVINGFIRST AND SECOND END WALL PORTIONS AS WELL AS A SIDE PORTION, AN AIRHOSE IN COMMUNICATION WITH THE INTERIOR OF SAID BODY BEING EXTENDED FROMTHE SECOND ONE OF SAID END SALL PORTIONS, A DRAIN HOSE SECURED TO SAIDSECOND END WALL PORTION, A RIGID CONDUIT EXTENDING THROUGH SAID BODY ANDCONNECTED TO SAID DRAIN HOSE, A PAIR OF RING MEMBERS HAVING CIRCULARPORTIONS ENCOMPASSING END PORTIONS OF SAID AIR HOSE AND OF SAID DRAINHOSE ADJACENT SAID SECOND END WALL PORTION AND HAVING ALSO STRAIGHTPORTIONS EXTENDING FROM SAID CIRCULAR PORTIONS AND PARTIALLY OVERLAYINGEACH OTHER AND HAVING REGISTERING HOLES, AND A CHAIN LINK EXTENDINGTHROUGH THE REGISTERING HOLES IN THE STRAIGHT PORTIONS OF SAID RINGMEMBERS FOR PIVOTALLY JOINING THE OVERLAYING SECTIONS OF THE STRAIGHTPORTIONS OF SAID RING MEMBERS SO AS TO COLLAPSE SAID PAIR OF RINGMEMBERS UPON PULLING THE CHAIN LINK, THEREBY PARTIALLY COLLAPSING AN ENDWALL PORTION OF SAID RESILIENT HOLLOW BODY.